#ie. sanji in water 7

[authenticaussie]

It must be so hard to be so obsessed with canon that you exit out if a fic if they mess up a canon fact. Like. If I see someone mentioning something WrongTM about canon I just presume they have edited Just That Section of canon because they personally decided they hated it 😂

[usoppssketchbook]

This is kind of what I was talking about with that art I recently posted. Usopp’s fighting style since the timeskip leans heavily on the pop greens. They are powerful, and he can handle stronger enemies than he used to because of them, but at the same time they’ve become a crutch for him. The weapons are powerful, not him or the way he uses them. It seems like he’s become less inclined to use his head and skills to win, and more likely to charge into situations headfirst, the same way he used to criticize Luffy and Zoro for doing. In the case of Sugar and Trebol, this resulted in getting his ass beat and only winning on a fluke**. 

Usopp has the might of pop greens behind him now, but they're not what make him strong. In a fight, Usopp's greatest strengths have always been his quick thinking and creativity. I want him in a situation that takes all his tricks, cunning, and inventiveness to survive, a situation where he can't lean on just his plants or some powerful weapon like Kuro Kabuto to get things done. I know it's never gonna happen because using your brains strategy isn't how you become a Strong Honorable Man™ in One Piece, but I really want Usopp's character growth to be about accepting himself, and for that acceptance to include using his own kind of strength to win, not capitulating to One Piece’s worship of head on battle. I want him to come out the other side of that fight with the understanding that he doesn't need to be like Luffy or Zoro or the giants to be strong, that he doesn’t have to be like his dad, that he doesn’t have to jump into every situation guns blazing or live completely without fear to be a brave warrior. 

**credit where credit is due, he did follow this up with an epic shot and psychological warfare tactics, which I loved

usopp likes to tinker, and make things, and invent things that improve himself and his skills and the fact that about absolutely NONE of that shines through in his design, fighting style, or skills, is bullshit. usopp is tactical and smart and i would classify as the best guy to make a strategy in any situation and the fact that this trait of his seems to have been replaced with the plants thing is shit to me

the tactician aspect of usopp is what should have been delved into further, it is the character development that usopp needs to come to terms with, that he’ll never be strong like luffy or zoro but he will always win against them because he is smarter than them and more clever then they are, that maybe he won’t be a “man” in the way he feels his father was, but he’ll be strong of heart, morals, and skills

like the plants thing is cool but it’s also bullshit because it’s an entirely new trait rather then expanding on a pre established trait like the rest of the got to do during the timeskip.

[melonteee]

You know I appreciate that sometime OP puts women in the background going gaga over a beautiful lady. Lily is the obvious example but even on wano there's a few examples. I know there's more notable rep examples (for good and ill) but I do appreciate something so casually put in there.

omg in a recent ep there was literally a woman giving Hiyori heart eyes, and we've also had men give heart eyes to other men (ie in Water 7 the guys of the city were going crazy over the Galley-La Company). The G5 squad also said Sanji's so cool they could fall for him LMAOO One Piece said there be queers in these waters

[general-cyno]

I actually find it funny when they say Zoro needs development but can't say specifically what they want from him. I kid you not, I recently saw a discussion where some people said they wanted him to be more outwardly emotional while others said no, but he needed more moments where he acted like a "vice captain." Others just wanted him to act more "silly" and for him to laugh more because otherwise he is a rock. I understand if you don't like a character's way of being or his writing, but narratively, Post-TS Zoro's attitude makes sense. I love OP pre-TS, I feel like being more focused on the SHs most of them benefited a lot from that because they had more space, but I have no complaints with him Post-TS. For me there are other SHs that need more attention and development.

tbh I've wondered if what ppl truly mean when asking for zoro to have a "proper backstory" or character development is just... lowkey wishing him to have more screentime or focus during arcs, though part of it is probably not understanding zoro as a character either. I can't say I blame ppl for wanting him to get more screentime and such, I just don't think it'd serve any purpose as of now. plus, zoro's likely gonna get his due later on. his eventual confrontation against mihawk is nearly as awaited as luffy's with shanks so there's that.

I've also seen other ppl bring this up and I agree - that OP's narrative cares more to flesh out its characters rather than have them develop or change drastically throughout the story. ironically enough, when characters do experience some degree of growth or change (ie robin acting more silly, sanji asking robin for help in wano) it's suddenly a bad thing.

I really love pre TS as well, but I feel like most complaints about post TS zoro in specific fall through if you actually bother to pay attention. zoro's always been relatively more "serious" than other straw hats in certain circumstances and this aspect remained consistent. zoro demanding luffy to get his shit together in punk hazard or reminding him they're facing emperors in wano (for example) are very in line with water 7 zoro in comparison. considering they're facing bigger enemies and threats, him expressing the seriousness to match is. well. expected.

"zoro doesn't smile or goof around as much as he used to" whenever the story gives some breathing room for it, yes he does. one of the first things to happen during the trip to fish man island is him and luffy getting smacked around for clowning. he celebrates happily with the other straw hats and their allies whenever there's a party. post TS zoro is also funny as fuck if you ask me. leaving some of my favorite moments here:

[every-sanji]

What do you think are the best and worst arcs for Sanji, post and pre skip? (ie best and worst arcs pre-skip, and best and worst post-skip)

So disclaimer I've said this before I have not read post Wano third act so I can't say anything about what came after that maybe once this blog catches up to weekly releases and I start reading as I queue again closer to where I stopped in 2020 I'll change my mind but with all of that out of the way.

Pre-Time Skip

Best Arcs: I will always have a soft spot for the Baratie arc. I love the East Blue arcs in general I think they were a great introduction to the series as a whole and Baratie is no exception there. Baroque Works I think was another really strong point with Sanji and I adore getting to see him scheme and plot things behind the scenes. Whenever he does this it makes me very happy I love when he just disappears mid chapter while I'm working on this blog because I get excited seeing what he does when he reappears.

Worst: I feel like the cheap answer is Thriller Bark because of the womanizing and the nose bleeds and everything about him. And it is also correct. I think his mermaid antics in Water 7 also put it lower on this list.

Post Time Skip

Best Arcs: Whole Cake Island hands downnnnn it's his arc it's his character development. It really expands on a lot of things that were hinted at prior to the big reveal and it's just a well done arc. I am looking forward to my reread of this one! And from what I read of Wano back in the day I did like him there but again I dropped off around when chapter 1000 came out maybe shortly after. Actually fun fact my freshman year of college before I started working on this blog and was still keeping up with weekly releases I used to read the new chapters before my geology class while I was waiting for my lab partners to show up and this stands out so vividly in my mind and maybe that's why I like it so much.

Worst: Another cheap shot with Fishman Island but also Punk Hazard. I actually don't mind Punk Hazard as a whole I am also a Law fan at the end of the day and any time he's on screen I go <3 but the body swapping with Sanji was not his greatest moment. I wish he could be just slightly more normal about women in his personal life.

[swans-anime-ramblings]

A comprehensive in-depth look at why the OP anime is the way it is

Over on Twitter, user tomorrow_d_ani linked a very long and comprehensive paper (yes paper) about the state of the One Piece anime in relation to WCI. It’s about 30 pages long, with a ridiculous amount of sources for the info. It was retweeted by Yonkou Productions, Anime Ajay and a smattering of other animation experts. The info is legit. Instead of encouraging everyone to read 30 pages of animation breakdown (though if you want to, please do. It’s right here) I thought I’d bullet point the highlights. 

Let’s get ourselves educated about the anime!

About the pre-time skip stuff

- Contrary to most western fans beliefs that Water 7/Ennis Loby and Marineford (or anything pre-time skip for that matter) is the best material the anime has ever put out, is not true.

The ratings for Ennis Lobby were so low the show was in legitimate danger of being cancelled.

There used to be two online bulletin boards where fans could post their thoughts about the episodes on the official OP website but they were both shut down because of nick picking comments and attacks on the animators.

To save the show from being cancelled, One Piece was moved out of the golden time-slot (19:00-22:00 hours) to Sunday mornings at 9:30 am. This is the block the show airs today

- There were complaints during Marineford that the show was horribly paced and there wasn’t enough Sakuga (ie high quality animation sequences). This was due to much of the staff being allocated to Strong World

Staff changes have affected the anime in negative and positive ways

-  The production began to improve during Punk Hazard up until the end of Dressrosa where it took another nosedive due to two specials and Film Gold, where many of the staff were taken off the anime

- The staff tried to revamp the anime during Zou but weren’t quite successful. However, what they learned allowed the quality of WCI to go up drastically

-  Luffy vs Sanji was treated as an actual special, and could be viewed as “episode of Sanji”. The amount of recap during the episode was to fill in viewers tuned in for the first time, but that had an adverse effect on weekly watchers

-  According to an annual report, OP had 6.2 million viewers in Japan in 2017, and 70% of those viewers were above 20 years old. 63% of viewers were male

- Keniichi Ichikawa replaced Kazuya Hisada as animation director, but Hisada moved into a new position as character animation director. This is why the art and closeups look so good in WCI

Pacing and Oda’s connection to the anime

-  Oda has stated in multiple places that he has greatly compacted his story in recent years and it doesn’t have as much detail as he would like so he can finish the story

This creates an opportunity for the anime to fill in details that Oda must omit

Oda has provided a lot of material to the staff to fill in these moments, like Sabo’s backstory, characters in WCI and so on

The staff contacted Oda when they wanted to add more action scenes from Imurashi’s Musketeers in the Zou arc

- Pacing control has improved from PH and has reached stability in WCI

Production of One Piece

-   Toei isn’t exactly responsible for the long running format

The cash flow is as follows: Sponsors ---> Advertisement Agency ---> Tv Stations ---> Animation studio

Toei is at the bottom rung of the decision-making ladder

Multiple stakeholders in the anime (which in addition to the above flow chart include Shuiesha and Oda) mean decisions for the anime’s production is made by a committee

In order for the filler arc after Zou to be approved (so the staff had more time to get ready for WCI) it had to approved by ALL THE SHAREHOLDERS

-  During it’s run in the golden time slot Toei was producing about 38 episodes a year because there were a lot more breaks. In the time slot it’s in now, there are about 48 episodes a year

-  The animators at Toei love OP. They’ve given up holidays to work on the show

TL;DR

As western fans I think it’s important for us to note that we don’t quite understand how things work in the anime industry. One Piece was nearly canceled during Ennis Lobby and moved to a new time slot. Staff changes have caused a huge improvement for the WCI arc, and Toei is not responsible for the long-running anime format. Major changes in the anime have to get approved by multiple parties and shareholders. Finally, in-canon filler is seen by Oda and the staff as an opportunity, not a burden.

Honestly some real fascinating stuff. This isn’t to say the anime can’t be criticized, but I think criticism should come from a place to understanding. The more informed we are, the better off the fandom will be too! I’ve seen this happen in the Dragon Ball community, and I have hope for the OP community too :-)

[recentanimenews]

With the Wano Arc, One Piece is Finally Nearing its Endgame

It’s been clear for a long time that One Piece has been building up to something big. For as much as people joke about its length, One Piece has always been the type of story with a clear end goal in mind. Eiichiro Oda himself commented that the time-skip was about Wan Pisu’s halfway point, and while Oda’s estimates haven’t always been accurate (he originally expected One Piece to last about five years and that ship sailed almost twenty years ago), Wano is proof that One Piece is nearing its endgame.

Just consider how much time the series has spent setting it up. We first met Kin’emon back at Punk Hazard, which was also where Law first mentioned Kaido as the alliance’s target. And now, seven years later, Kaido is in reach. This isn’t like Whole Cake Island where Big Mom was more of an obstacle to rescuing Sanji than someone to be defeated — defeating Kaido is the entire reason the Straw Hats are in Wano. Even though Orochi is nominally the main target in Wano, he’s not much more than a puppet for Kaido. He obviously couldn’t have come to power without Kaido’s backing, and defeating him doesn’t mean much as long as Kaido’s still around. There’s no getting around it: Kaido has to go down. But, Kaido is no ordinary villain.

  Ever since the Four Emperors were first mentioned at Water 7, One Piece has always been clear that they’re at the top. Whitebeard — the first we saw in action — was introduced as the strongest man in the world, and proceeded to prove that by going toe-to-toe with people even Luffy didn’t stand a chance against. Even as recently as Whole Cake Island, Big Mom proved to be more of a force of nature than an opponent to fight. But things are different now. Luffy’s beaten Warlords, other pirate captains, and even an Emperor’s top fighter. The next step from there is fighting an Emperor directly. Once that happens, we’ll know that One Piece is really nearing its conclusion.

Think about it. Part of what makes One Piece so great is the cast’s visible progression over the years. Luffy’s gone from being proud of his 30,000,000 berry bounty to taking down people worth over 100,000,000 with little trouble. Each major arc showcases Luffy and his crew getting just a little stronger, just a little better at what they do. Each improvement puts them just a little closer to the One Piece, however long that journey actually is. So what happens when they finally reach the top? That’s when you know the One Piece is finally within their grasp.

Then again, fighting an Emperor is completely different from anything the Straw Hats have done before. Luffy tried doing things his usual way — finding the main enemy and charging off to fight them — but Kaido isn’t a typical foe. We’ve seen Luffy lose before, but usually because his opponent either had some special ability he didn’t know how to counter (ie. Crocodile) or because he was already injured or otherwise didn’t have a chance to go all out (ie. Kuma). None of that happens here. Luffy hammers Kaido with punches from Boundman — the same form that matched Katakuri and outmatched Doflamingo — only for Kaido to get right back up and end the fight in one blow. That blow is a statement: Emperors aren’t going down that easily.

  The Wano Arc embodies this sentiment: Things are different now. The Straw Hats aren’t just a scrappy little crew fighting their way up the ladder. They’re a famous pirate crew that’s nearing the top of the ladder. And things don’t work the same way at the top. You can’t just charge in and win through sheer determination when your opponent is a monster like Kaido. So much of the arc thus far has been spent preparing for the right moment to attack Kaido and Orochi to catch them off guard. Kin’emon’s plan is necessary now, since Kaido won’t be going down by brute force alone. But even if his plan goes off without a hitch, they still need someone capable of fighting Kaido, meaning Luffy has to improve fast. There aren’t any more enemies he can beat on the way, no steps between him and Kaido, just one massive leap to prove he’s able to take on an Emperor.

No matter how things end up, Wano is do-or-die time. If Luffy wants to keep advancing (and we know he does), he’ll have to surpass Kaido. And if he does, that’ll be a game-changer like nothing we’ve seen before. Look at all the upheaval that happened after Whitebeard’s death. The Navy went through massive rebuilding and restructuring, new pirates went out to snap up Whitebeard’s territory, and Blackbeard ascended to the level of Emperor. If Kaido goes down, the same thing is likely to happen, only Luffy will be at the center of everything this time around. Once that happens, we’ll know the One Piece is in sight.

  Though One Piece still has plenty left (the subplots from the Reverie alone will probably take years to resolve), the events since Luffy’s arrival at Wano are proof that the endgame is approaching. The One Piece may not be within Luffy’s grasp just yet, but it’s closer than ever before.

  What do you think of Wano so far? Are you excited to see One Piece nearing the end? Let us know in the comments!

  ----------------

  Skyler loves writing and chatting about anime, and is always ready to gush about the latest One Piece chapter. Read more of his work at his blog apieceofanime.com and follow him on Twitter at Videogamep3.

    Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com